I'll Run Away To You
by unshakespearean
Summary: When the Torchwood team goes on an ordinary Weevil chase, the last thing they expect is to find a sixteen-year-old runaway. A hundred and fifty miles from home, Alice Bentley might not be an ordinary kid. Who is she? Established Harcooper (Gwen/Jack). Cowritten with Mary aka Professional Procrastinator! Image credit goes to my friend Bish!
1. The Runaway

**Chapter One: The Runaway**

_Jack's POV_

"Over here!" I turn to see Gwen pointing. "They went that way!" We take off down the street after the two Weevils. One of them keeps going straight, but another turns right.

"Split up!" I shout. "Gwen, with me-"

"Not happening," Tosh cuts me off. "We'll never catch it. Go with Owen."

I'm about to retort, when we hear a high-pitched scream coming from the right-hand street. "I think that was a kid. Owen, come on!" And I run down the street, Owen just behind me.

We find the Weevil, and sure enough, there's a kid in front of it, a girl, fifteen, sixteen years old, and she's clearly terrified.

"Owen, spray it!" I shout. She turns to look at me, and the Weevil tries to grab her, but Owen's faster. In a second the giant ugly thing is down on the ground. I look at the girl and she looks back at me. She's about normal height, but she's far too skinny, her t-shirt hanging loosely over her body. It's bad enough that she's wearing a t-shirt in this weather, but that loose a shirt is bound to let freezing air in. Her light brown hair is an absolute mess, but not rolled-out-of-bed messy - I know what that looks like; I see it every single day on Gwen - no, it's more like what Rose's hair looked like that time we had three adventures in a row, all running and no sleep. Her eyes are sort of glazed over, but also really freaked out. "Hey," I say softly. "Hey…" She says nothing. I grin at her. "Hey, I know I look good, but why do you look like you're about to pass out?"

"Um… um…" Her hands tremble, and then her knees buckle. I catch her just as her eyes roll back into her head and then close.

"I've got you," I say softly. "You're going to be alright."

"Who is she?" Owen asks as he drags the Weevil back toward me.

"No clue," I reply. "She just passed out. Looks like she hasn't eaten or slept in days. And she's probably hypothermic or something."

"Get her back to the car," Owen instructs. "I have the keys. I'll turn it on so at least she can keep warm. Call the girls." He opens the trunk and stuffs the Weevil inside, and then turns on the car. I open the door and sit the girl in back. She collapses in a heap, sprawling half on the seat and half off.

"Alright, that's not going to work," I laugh. I scoop her up and sit down, letting her sort of drape on top of me. "Let's call the girls, shall we?" I pick up my comm and call Gwen. "We've got the Weevil, and the girl."

"Great, we've got ours. We'll be back in a few minutes and then we can take her back to the Hub, find out who she is, Retcon her, and take her home."

"We are not going to Retcon her!" I say firmly. "Not yet, at least."

"Jack-"

"Gwen, she's not just any kid. There's something going on. She was in a t-shirt that was too big for her, she hasn't eaten or slept in days, I can tell. I'm not turning her loose on Retcon yet."

"Okay…" Gwen sounds hesitant. "If you're sure…"

"I'm positive. Get back here, and I'll convince you."

I can hear her rolling her eyes before she says "We'll be there soon."

"Awesome." Just then Owen gets back into the car and sits in the driver's seat. "Oh, no way. You're not driving. We have precious cargo." I point to the girl half in my lap. "You'll kill her."

"Fine," he mutters, and he goes around to the passenger seat and crosses his arms over his chest. "What's so special about her, anyway? She's just some kid."

"She is not just some kid!" I practically shout. I tighten my grip on her, pulling her closer to me. "I don't know how I know this, but she's _special_."

Tosh and Gwen return, dragging the Weevil together. "So where's the kid?" Gwen asks as they stuff it into the trunk.

"Here." I lift her a bit so Gwen can see. "And _we are not going to Retcon her_."

"Oh, God…" Gwen's eyes widen at the sight of the teenager. "It's like she came off the streets."

"That's what I was thinking," I nod. I move the kid a bit so Gwen can sit down next to me. "I just don't feel right Retconning her just yet."

"No, I get it." That's the thing about Gwen, she always gets it. She scoots from the left seat to the middle and puts the girl's legs in her lap. "She must be freezing, in a t-shirt like that. No wonder she passed out."

"I'm driving?" Tosh asks. "Why isn't Owen? Thought it was his turn."

"He can take his turn when there isn't a kid he can kill," I explain. "We've got to get her inside, and quick."

"If you wanted _quick_-"

"Owen, just shut up," Gwen mutters. "Tosh, step on it." She rolls her eyes.

"Thought that was my line," I tease. She rolls her eyes again.

We get back to the Hub and I run with the kid down to the autopsy bay. "Alright, everyone can be helping now. Owen, take a DNA sample. Tosh, start running photographs. I want to know who this kid is. Gwen, see if you can find something for her to wear that's at least somewhere approximating her size. Ianto, coffee. I'm going to put the Weevil in the vault. Everyone meet down here when you're done." I watch as Ianto and the girls run off to complete their respective assignments. "Owen, if she wakes up, tell me immediately. Understand?" He nods.

"There's something about her," I say softly as I lock the Weevil in a holding cell. "What is it? What is getting me about that kid?"

* * *

><p>"Owen and my tests both came out to the same result," Tosh announces when I get back to the autopsy bay. "Her name is Alice Bentley. Sixteen years old, lives in Chiswick-"<p>

"-Then what's she doing here?" I ask.

"I was getting there! Sixteen years old, lives in Chiswick, ran away from home three weeks ago. No trace of her since, until now."

"A runaway," I say softly. Ianto hands me a mug of coffee. "Thanks."

"So… what now?" he asks.

"We Retcon her and take her home," Owen replies. "Right now."

"Absolutely not." I take Alice's hand in my own and squeeze it protectively. "At least not until she wakes up."

Gwen comes in with a set of pj's. "Best I could do," she sighs. "But she's far too skinny for her age."

"She's a runaway," I explain quickly.

"Oh, God," Gwen says softly, putting a hand on my shoulder. "I wonder why…"

"Looks like we can ask her." Tosh points to Alice, who's just beginning to stir. "She's waking up."

* * *

><p><strong>Hey everyone! Here's the first installment of I'll Run Away To You! Hoped you liked!<strong>

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	2. Wonderland

**Chapter Two: Wonderland**

_Alice's POV_

I open my eyes to see five people standing around me. I'm lying down in a room that sort of looks like a hospital room except not really. The air smells weird, sort of… underground-ish. Am I underground? Where am I? More importantly, who are these five people? And what the hell happened?

"Hey, Alice," says the man closest to me. He has an American accent. I look up and recognize him as the last person I saw.

"How do you know my name?" This is bad. Very bad. If they know who I am, they'd know that I ran away, and now they're going to take me home. "I've never met you before. Any of you. How do you know who I am?"

"Hate to tell you, Alice, but a lot of people know who you are. Three weeks missing, you're sure to attract a lot of attention."

_He has a point_, I think, but then I realize something. "Yeah, except I'm nearly a hundred and fifty miles from home. Shouldn't be attracting attention from this far away. Are you the police?"

"Beyond the police," he mutters, scowling.

"_Beyond _the police? What the hell does that mean?"

He opens his mouth, when one of the other guys cuts him off. "Jack, don't."

"Oh, come on, Owen," Jack shrugs. "She's already seen a Weevil. Might as well hear the rest."

"Is that what that _thing_ was? A… Weevil? What's that? It looked like an alien or something. Is it an alien? You hear about aliens all the time on the news these days. The spaceship crashing into Big Ben, and the one hovering over London on Christmas, all of those people standing on the roofs. That whole Canary Wharf thing. And the Christmas Star, too. And just before I ran away, there was that hospital that went to the moon. Are these Weevil things aliens, too?" I grin. I _love_ hearing stories about aliens, conspiracy theories, all of that.

"That's right," Jack nods. "We're Torchwood. We fight aliens to protect the human race."

"Is this your base or something?" I ask.

"It's called the Hub. Want to see?" Jack grins broadly. Clearly he's excited about this.

"Definitely," I reply.

"Alright then!" Jack stands up and offers me a hand. I take it and he helps me up. "You're Alice… I suppose you could call this place Wonderland." He begins walking up a flight of stairs rather quickly.

"I hated _Alice in Wonderland_," I tell him as I run to catch up with him. "Because in the end, Wonderland isn't real, and Alice is just crazy."

"I can promise you this place is real," Jack grins. "Alice Bentley, welcome to the Hub." He pushes open the door and leads me into the room.

It might be the weirdest room on the planet. I can't even quite describe it. It's an absolute mess, first off, papers and things strewn about everywhere. Computers on some of the desks, science equipment on others, a hand in a jar (really), and a giant tall thing in the middle that looks like-

"-The water tower," I realize. "Are we underneath the water tower?"

"That's right," Jack grins. "Cool, no?"

"Definitely cool. So who are the rest of you, then?" I turn to see that all of the other people have gone to their work stations and are just sort of watching me and Jack.

"Well, you already know me. Captain Jack Harkness."

"Captain?" I ask. "Is this some sort of military division or something?"

"No, he's just stuck-up because he's in charge." I turn to see a dark-haired woman with bright green eyes.

"That's Gwen," Jack introduces her. "She's in charge of keeping us acting like decent human beings and looking gorgeous."

"Yeah, that's all fine and good," Gwen says, rolling her eyes. "Quick question, Alice - did Jack try to flirt with you when you first met him?"

I laugh. "Oh yeah. He said, and I quote, 'Hey, I know I look good, but why do you look like you're about to pass out?' Is that common practice or something?"

"Understatement of the century," Gwen mutters. "Even though he's _taken_." She glares at him. "I'm mostly over it; it's not like he'll ever stop. Doesn't make it any less annoying. Asshole."

"Hey!" Jack whines.

"_Anyway_, I'm Tosh," a Japanese woman sitting at a giant computer interrupts. "I'm basically the department of hacking files, screwing with official records, finding out everything we need to know about everyone, and, most importantly, keeping these idiots on topic. I split that last one with Ianto." She points to a guy in a suit, who waves. "Ianto's other job is making the best goddamn coffee on the planet. Honestly, he's a god."

"Glad you think so," Ianto laughs. "I do like it when people worship me. And, speaking of idiots, that one over there is Owen, official team twat and butt of everyone's jokes. Also the guy who does most of the analysis and medical-y stuff. But the twat part's more important."

"Oi! I'm not a twat!" Owen scowls.

"I beg to differ," Jack replies casually. Clearly they've had this exchange a thousand times. I can't help but laugh. "Glad you find that funny, Alice," Jack grins. "You'll do well here."

"What do you mean, _she'll do well here_?" Owen shakes his head. "Jack, we have to take her home!"

Home. The last place I ever want to be. I hate it there. My parents hate me. I hate them. I ran away from a reason. I don't ever want to go back. Memories start flooding through my head, of my parents yelling at me, calling me worthless, that God made a mistake in bringing me into the world, that they were doing me such a kindness in feeding me, putting clothes on my back and a roof over my head. I feel tears building up in my eyes.

"Alice?" Jack asks gently. "Alice…" He comes a bit closer to me. "Alice, why are you crying?"

"I don't want to go home," I whisper, and I break down. I expect to him to say that he's sorry, but he has no choice. Instead he opens his arms to me, beckoning me to come closer. I do, confused, and then he pulls me in, hugging me tightly.

"Shhhh," he says softly. "I've got you, Alice. I've got you." And then he says something I've never heard an adult say before.

"You're safe."

I start crying harder, because I _feel _safe, for the first time in a very long time. He starts running his fingers through my hair and rubbing my back with his other hand, still shushing me softly.

Eventually he gently lets go and tilts my head up so we're looking at each other. "Why don't you want to go home, Alice?"

"Because my parents hate me," I whisper. "They always say… they say that I'm not worth anything, that I'm a mistake… They hit me, sometimes… They keep saying on the news that my parents miss me so much, and that I ran away from a loving home, but it's all a lie." I lift up my shirt just slightly, so Jack can see the bruise on my left hip.

"Oh, Alice," Jack murmurs, pulling me into his arms again. "They did that to you?" I nod, locking my arms around his waist, clutching to the only person in the whole world who's ever cared about me. He starts stroking my hair again and presses a soft kiss to my forehead. "I've got you," he says again.

"Please don't make me go home," I whisper into his chest.

"Not a chance," Jack replies emphatically. "I'm not going to let you go, Alice. I promise."

"Excuse me." We turn to see Ianto, holding at least five boxes of pizza. "I hate to interrupt this really rather sweet moment but I was wondering something. Alice, do you like pepperoni?"

"Yes!" I grin broadly. "It's my _favorite_."

"Alright then, to the conference room!"

"Ianto! I swear you were in the main room five minutes ago!" Jack sighs. "I will never know how the man does it."

"What, produce five boxes of pizza out of nowhere?" I laugh. "Does he do that often?"

"Oh, yeah, he's magic," Gwen explains. "Absolutely incredible. Huge asset." Ianto bows. "And just as much a showoff as Jack."

"Don't push it, or you won't get any pizza," Ianto teases.

Jack shoots Ianto a death glare. "Ianto. Stop flirting with Gwen. She's _taken_." He grabs Gwen's hand and pulls her towards him protectively.

"You can talk," I retort, poking Jack's arm. "Flirted with a sixteen-year-old."

"Oh, Alice, I like you." Gwen gives me a high-five. Jack pouts. "Oh, don't be like that, Jack." She presses a quick kiss to Jack's cheek and the pout melts away in an instant.

"You two are adorable," I comment. "Really, absolutely adorable."

"It's significantly less adorable when you see it _every other minute_," Owen mutters under his breath. Tosh nudges his arm.

"Be nice," she chastises.

"Excuse me." We turn to see Ianto once again, leaning against the wall and rolling his eyes. "But when you're _quite _done, the pizza's getting cold."

"Pizza," I whisper breathlessly. I haven't eaten in at least a few days. And it smells _sooooo _amazing. Like heaven.

"Come on, sit down," Ianto grins, leading me to the table.

"Thank you thank you thank you thank you!" I throw my arms around him and hug him tightly.

"You're welcome," he chuckles. "Eat." He sits me down and puts a plate with three slices of pizza in front of me.

As I eat at least seven slices of pizza (each time I finish, they put another two slices in front of me), I look around at the others and they're all grinning. I feel like I've come home.

* * *

><p>"Alice, I was thinking," Jack says after I finish eating. "Would you like to join the team? You're sixteen; that's old enough to work here."<p>

"You mean I could catch aliens and stuff every single day?" My eyes widen. This sounds like the time of my life!

"Do you want to?"

"Yes!" I laugh aloud. "Oh my God I get to catch aliens!" I jump up and throw my arms tightly around Jack. "This'll be the best!"

"It's going to be scary," he warns me. "And it's going to be hard. And you're probably going to hate me sometimes. We aren't exactly ethical."

"Understatement," Gwen interjects. "If not for me they'd be monsters."

"True. Are you sure you want in?"

"What's the alternative?" I ask.

Jack sighs. "I don't know. We can't have you doing much in the normal world if you're living here; it's a security threat. I trust you and all, but it's policy. We… made this agreement with the UN. If we stay undercover and quiet, they won't try to shut us down."

"Is that why we're such a secret?" Gwen asks. "I didn't know that; I thought you were just an asshole about things."

"Oh, Gwen, as ever I admire your ability to presume positive intentions." Jack elbows Gwen "But yeah, that's why we're a secret."

"I always did hate UNIT," Tosh mutters.

"What's UNIT?"

"Unified Idiots Taskforce," Tosh says, rolling her eyes. "Official UN division regarding alien life. Absolutely useless and stupid. And one day they're going to fail us."

"Tosh got in trouble a few years back when she stole some less-than perfect plans for a sonic modulator-"

"What the hell is a sonic modulator?" I ask.

"It's a reverse-engineered weapon based off of the Doctor's sonic screwdriver," Jack explains.

"Who's the Doctor?"

"A good friend of mine. He's an alien called a Time Lord-"

"-Not pompous at all." I laugh. "Seriously, who came up with that?"

"No idea," Jack replies, "although you're right; it is pompous. So was he. Anyway, he helped UNIT out back in the 70s, 80s, and they learned about his sonic screwdriver."

"What's a sonic screwdriver?"

"Think… super high-tech Swiss Army knife. UNIT tried to reverse-engineer it, and they came up with a weapon. The Doctor would be furious if he ever found out. Hates violence with a passion. Anyway, Tosh stole the plans and then managed to build the thing even though the plans were faulty. Just a bit more proof that they're absolute pigs."

"Like my parents," I remark. "Any time I prove to be smarter than they are-new bruise."

"A family UNIT," Owen jokes. We all roll our eyes. "Oh, come on, as far as puns go that's not so bad."

"Anyway, if I don't join you guys, what happens?" Jack frowns, clenching his teeth slightly. "Don't answer that. I'm in."

He sighs in relief. "Alice Bentley, welcome to Torchwood."

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys! Chapter two! So, a new member of Torchwood!<strong>

**Ofelia totally made up the whole UNIT/Torchwood thing, by the way. Just sayin.**

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**Ofelia and Mary xx**


	3. First Night

**Hey guys! Before we begin, a quick 'verse note: This one takes place just after **_**Cyberwoman**_ **(s1e4). At some point just before the beginning of this story, a miracle occurred and Jack and Gwen became a thing.**

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**Here's the way it works: Write a oneshot taking place after **_**Cyberwoman **_**in which Gwen and Jack get together. Then send it to whatthefluffproject at gmail dot com! Your oneshot will become part of the ongoing What the Fluff Project - details in the profile!**

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* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Three: First Night<strong>

_Jack's POV_

"Alright, Alice, I'd say you'd best get to bed," I say. I can tell she's super tired. "I'll show you your bedroom, alright?"

"I get to live here?" she asks excitedly. "Cool!" She gets up and I lead her downstairs.

"We'll decorate it and make it more fun over the weekend," I decide. "And get your stuff from your old room, if you want. For now, it's pretty boring."

"I get to stay in the super-cool Torchwood-base-Hub-thing," she grins. "It could look like a prison cell for all I care."

"Well, it won't once we're through with it." I open the door to her room. "There we are."

The room couldn't be more drab. And yet she seems to think it's the most incredible place on the planet. "Thank you!" she almost squeals. She hugs me tightly and then runs into the room and flings herself on the bed, laughing. "Night!"

"Night, Alice." I can't help but smile as I close the door and leave. I can tell she'll do really well on the team. She's got the energy for it, and she's resourceful as all hell for being able to get to Cardiff and not get caught. She seems athletic and has stamina-

"She's a decent human being, too." I turn to see Gwen. "I could use the company. Stop talking to yourself, crazy. She can't hear you, but it doesn't make you any less nuts."

"She's definitely a decent human being," I agree, deciding not to comment on the talking to myself thing. "And she's young and has strong opinions and she's survived hell."

"She reminds you of you, doesn't she?" Gwen shoots me her _I know exactly what you're thinking _look. "Minus the young part. Speaking of which, are you planning on telling her any time soon?

"Well, none of the others know," I start. "I don't think-"

"-They might as well, though, after the whole Lisa thing," Gwen argues. "They might think it was a fluke now, but they won't when it happens again. And don't say _if _it happens again. I know you well enough to know that you can't avoid dangerous situations for too long. Especially if it means protecting the rest of us."

"True enough," I sigh. "Not yet, though. At some point I'll tell all of them, Alice included. I didn't like the fact that you had to find out before you were even on the team."

"Why not?" she asks.

I sigh. "Promise you won't tell the others?"

"Uh… yeah?"

"I wasn't going to Retcon you again, even if you'd said you didn't want to join. I had a feeling you'd say yes, but even if you didn't, I was going to let you go knowing about us. Thought maybe you could still be our link to the normal world. But I didn't want you to know that I couldn't die. It's one thing for Torchwood to be a bit more out in the open, but the whole immortality thing is one of my only secrets. Didn't want a chance of that leaking out."

"I beg to differ," she replies. "On my first day, when I was trying to get you four asses to treat Carys like a normal person, they were asking me about you. You're a lot more mysterious to them than you might think."

"Only secret that matters to me," I correct myself. "You won't tell the others? It's policy that anyone who leaves us with no intention of coming back gets Retconned. I don't want them to think that that's ever going to change."

She looks at me again with that _I know what you're thinking _look. "You thought I'd come back, didn't you? Even if I'd said no, you wanted me to be able to find you again and ask to join." I nod. She always knows what I'm thinking. It's annoying, but it's one of the best things about her. "Y'know, I only said yes because I thought it would be my only chance. I was sure that if I'd said no, you'd Retcon me again. You were pissed at Suzie for the murdering thing; I didn't think you'd try to do as she suggested. It wasn't until I'd been on the team for a few days that I knew I'd made the best choice ever."

"I hope I made a good choice in taking Alice in," I sigh. "She's just a kid after all."

"She'll be fine," Gwen reassures me. "And I think she'll do really well here." She takes my hand. "Come on. We should go back upstairs."

* * *

><p>"I just found something interesting," Tosh announces when we get back to the main Hub. "So, Alice has a birth certificate saying she was born on February thirteenth 1991, to Teresa and Luke Bentley."<p>

"Okay…?" I'm not sure where this is going.

"Except when Owen did the DNA test, it said that Alice has type O blood. Her mother and father are blood donors for type A and AB blood respectively, which means Alice can't be either of their biological daughters."

"So what you're saying is that she has a birth certificate saying she's the daughter of two people who genetically can't be her parents?"

"Exactly," Tosh nods.

"I know this doesn't actually happen in real life, but could there have been some sort of switched at birth mistake?"

"I thought of that," Tosh replies. "So I checked the hospital where she was born - interestingly enough it's the Royal Hope hospital, the one that was taken to the moon - anyway, I checked, and this is the craziest part - there wasn't a single baby born on her birthday. Not one. I thought that maybe the day was wrong, so I checked the entire history of the Royal Hope birthing unit - no Teresa and Luke Bentley. No such name on the records."

"So that means…"

"Alice's so-called birth certificate is fake."

"How could that have happened and nobody noticed?"

"I'm not sure," Tosh sighs. "But what I'm more interested in is who Alice really is."

"Could it be something to do with aliens or the Rift?" Gwen asks. "I mean, weird stuff pops up around here all the time."

"Her DNA checks out; she's clearly a normal sixteen-year-old human," Owen jumps in. "And she's lived with the Bentleys all her life, in the same house in Chiswick."

"You said February 1991, right?" I ask. Tosh nods. "That's before I took charge of Torchwood. Ianto, were you in Torchwood One then?"

"Yes, I was," Ianto replies from his computer. "As far as I can remember, there was no weird activity in the area back then. Checking the records now for all Torchwood branches."

"You're a star." I grin. I freaking love my team. "Any chance she was born at some other point in time?"

"Like I said, DNA checks out. She's a totally normal sixteen-year-old human. If she did pop out of the Rift somehow, it was back in 1991."

"Nothing," Ianto calls from the computer. "Absolutely no activity in the London area in 1991, nothing that would produce a kid out of nowhere. I don't know about you, but I've only got one idea: Somehow, the Bentleys are in on the scheme. They took in the kid and faked the birth certificate."

"Owen, any chance you could find the biological parents using her DNA?"

"I already did that. Comes out to the Bentleys. Somehow, the database is wrong."

"That's absolutely insane!" I exclaim. "How did that happen?"

"I think the only people who could tell us are the Bentleys," Gwen says. "Ianto's right, they're part of this. I'm going to find them and talk to them. I want to, anyway. And I can talk to them while you get the stuff from Alice's room." She pulls a card out of her desk. "I mean, it's not like I was on the police before I came here or anything."

"Again with the stardom. Now go home. We'll keep trying to figure this out in the morning."

"See you tomorrow," Tosh says as she walks out the door. "You love this, don't you? Having a mystery to solve."

I shrug. "Yeah, I suppose so."

* * *

><p><strong>Hey! Here's chapter three! So, we have a mystery! Who might this Alice character be?<strong>

**These past chapters have all been written by Ofelia. The next portion of this story is going to be a rewrite of s1e5, **_**Small Worlds**_**, written by Mary! After that, canon goes right out the window! Yaaaaaaay!**

**As always, love and ducks to the Lone Shippers, and don't forget to write Miracle oneshots or WTF oneshots in general - details in the profile!**

**Ofelia and Mary xx**


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